The purpose oF this research is to document the interaction between the private experience of miscarriage, or spontaneous fetal loss, and contact with formal supports such as the medical system and informal supports such as family and peers. While the literature on rates of miscarriage indicate that at least 15 percent of all pregnancies spontaneously abort, few psychological and sociological researchers have addressed themselves to the question of how the woman and her family resolve their feelings about a miscarriage. Our preliminary research indicates that women who miscarry often find the event to be both physically and psychologically painful. Since our culture provides few supports, these women frequently feel isolated, guilty and depressed. However, we have learned through interviews with physicians that many obstetricians think miscarriage does not cause psychological problems which they should have to deal with. Some supports seem to be meaningful when they occur; for example, friends or others who had miscarried and then had children served as important models for women miscarrying. All eleven of the obstetricians in one small city have agreed to present our research plan to each of their patients who appears for a follow-up examination after her miscarriage. The physician will ask her to check off a statement in our brochure if she is willing to have us contact her for a structured interview. Each of those interviewed during the first six months of research will also be asked to participate in a six-month follow-up interview. We expect to elicit responses concerning the woman's reaction to the miscarriage, her physician's management of the event, the husband's reaction to the miscarriage, and what forms of support she received. Data analysis will identify salient aspects of the experience and those factors which help the woman resolve her feelings most effectively.